Stories about workers’ experiences, the many ways our volunteers help, insights and facts that TWC2 have unearthed

24 11, 2015

A Sri Lankan’s story – the blurry line between exploitation and trafficking

2019-08-30T16:32:22+08:00November 24th, 2015|Articles, Facts, research, analysis, Stories|

Transient Workers Count Too sees a relatively small number of Sri Lankans in the course of our work. There are far fewer of them in Singapore compared to Indians and Bangladeshis. Sri Lankans are an approved source for domestic work, construction and marine sectors, but except for women in the former, TWC2 can't recall seeing

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16 11, 2015

In a soft voice, a tale of $10,000

2019-08-30T16:32:22+08:00November 16th, 2015|Articles, Stories|

By Jas Talukder Joynal approaches me hesitantly, yet he does not strike me as a man of low self-esteem. Clad in a brightly coloured checkered shirt, with a good trendy fit, he definitely cares about his appearance. His face is one that has not yet been marked with the hardships of life and I am a little

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6 11, 2015

The bicycle thief (who didn’t do it)

2019-08-30T16:32:23+08:00November 6th, 2015|Articles, Stories|

In the much acclaimed 1948 Italian movie of the same name, the protagonist searches for his stolen bike, the bike that he needs to keep his job to help his family escape from poverty in post-World War 2 Italy. Arman, the protagonist of this story who came to work in Singapore to help lift his

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31 10, 2015

“Please get going” — polite way for boss to tell worker he’ll be repatriated for getting medical leave

2019-08-30T16:32:23+08:00October 31st, 2015|Articles, Stories|

By Ranjana Raghunathan I ask Balasubramanian Mangaleswaran if he requested for medical treatment from his employer right after injuring his leg. He replies, “I asked them immediately, they just said that they would not pay for it.” He was told, “you must take care of it yourself.” This is against the law (see box at

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29 10, 2015

Call for proposals: Labour Court research project

2019-08-30T16:32:23+08:00October 29th, 2015|Articles, Facts, research, analysis, Happenings, News, News Flash|

TWC2 is seeking collaborators to help us undertake research on Singapore's Labour Court system at the Ministry of Manpower, specifically procedures and practices relating to the salary and injury claims of migrant workers. Research will include a review of legislation and legislative history governing salary and injury claims in Labour Court and an overview of

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21 10, 2015

Who cares about the overtime rule? and other discoveries

2019-08-30T16:32:24+08:00October 21st, 2015|Articles, Facts, research, analysis|

By Fatima Ying I was given the opportunity to intern for TWC2 and the experience allowed me to interact with migrant workers, most of whom are Indian and Bangladeshi nationals. Through my conversations with them, I got to find out more about their culture and lifestyle here and gained some interesting insights into the world

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